A large oil spill off the coast of northern Syria does not currently pose a threat to Israel, but the Environmental Protection Ministry is continuing to monitor the situation in case that changes, the ministry announced on Monday.
Last week, a crack in a fuel tank at the Baniyas Thermal Station led to large quantities of fuel being poured into the sea. The tank was filled with 15,000 tons of fuel, according to the Syrian state news agency SANA.
من عمليات إزالة التلوث الذي وصل إلى شاطئ مدينة #جبلة نتيجة تسرب الفيول من أحد خزانات المحطة الحرارية في #بانياس حيث تجري الأعمال بشكل يدوي بسبب طبيعة الشاطئ الصخرية pic.twitter.com/EIGVrHZYQ3
— سانا عاجل (@SanaAjel) August 25, 2021
Mahmoud Ramadan, director-general of the General Establishment for Electricity Generation, told SANA that the incident was not caused by an act of sabotage.
As of Sunday, cleanup efforts were continuing at a number of locations along the Syrian coast.
Satellite imagery from Planet satellite imagery showed a miles-long oil slick extending off the coast of Syria and spreading into the Mediterranean Sea.
As of Sunday, Israel's Environmental Protection Ministry reported that the oil slick was being carried northward by coastal streams.
Yoav Ratner, the coordinator of the National Marine Oil Spill Contingency Plan, is in constant contact with the Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean Sea (REMPEC) in Malta in order to monitor the incident and track if it poses a threat to Israel's coast. Israel has also offered its aid to REMPEC.
The latest information shows that there is no direct danger to Israel's shores, as the pollution continues to flow northward and spreads over an area of about 46 square miles (120 square kilometers). However, sea currents that are pushing the oil northward could change and move in other directions, including towards Israel, so the ministry is continuing to monitor the oil slick.
The massive 19km2 long oil spill from Baniyas Thermal Power plant clearly visible on @planet satellite imagery. Quick'n dirty measurement shows the main oil sheen being at least 13km2, though dispersal will make it larger over time, adding to marine and coastal pollution pic.twitter.com/kC2f50FsnA
— Wim Zwijnenburg (@wammezz) August 25, 2021
The oil spill comes just months after an oil spill caused large amounts of oil to coat Israel's shores in February, with the Environmental Protection Ministry blaming the tanker EMERALD, which carried Iranian oil, for the pollution.